MAC “Vera” Collection Haul: My Top Picks and Swatches!

MAC Butterfly Garden Crushed Metallic Pigments set

I had some gift vouchers (yay) so what better than to blow them on the MAC "Vera" 2012 collection?

I'd been waiting for this since I saw the images on MAC's site a few weeks ago, but didn't know it would hit our shelves this soon. So when I walked past a MAC counter this evening on my way to a movie, my eyes lighted on a small colorful display, and I might have shrieked a little before I made a beeline right for it. 

MAC Strawberry Patch Crushed Metallic Pigment set

All items swatched on bare skin without a base.

The item I had really wanted from the collection was actually only the Crushed Metallic Pigment stack "Butterfly Party", but I decided to swatch everything on a whim and feel in love with 2 other items I had not thought would be nice. So I ended up getting:

MAC Butterfly Garden Crushed Metallic Pigments swatches

Crushed Metallic Pigment Stack "Butterfly Party"

• Rain Drop: Metallic Teal (if you have Teal pigment, you don't need this.)
• Moss Garden: Sparkly Seafoam-Silver (unexpectedly pretty and quite unique)
• Butterfly Party: Rich Purple Pearl (nice but not a must to have)
• Desert Cloud: Metallic Indigo Violet (lovely blue-violet; a darker, more purple version of Cornflower pigment)

MAC Strawberry Patch Crushed Metallic Pigment swatches

Crushed Metallic Pigment Stack "Strawberry Patch"

• Star Crystal: Metallic champagne-ash (If you missed out Metal X Palladium, this is a lovely pearl-beige shade that isn't too stark white)
• Rose Light: Frosted Pastel Pink (80's pink - in a good way)
• Strawberry Patch: Glittery mauve (pretty, but my least favorite of the bunch because it's so sparkly that it's hard to wear for day, and needs a good base to work)
• Moon Rose: Metallic burgundy with fuchsia sheen (the reason I picked up this stack. The images don't do this justice so you'll have to swatch this yourself before it's sold out!)

MAC Pearlmatte Face Powder in Sunday Afternoon

MAC Pearlmatte Face Powder in Sunday Afternoon

I thought the 2 pearlmatte face powders were blushes until I swatched one of them on and got the surprise of my life. These are like a cross between beauty powders and Mineralize Skinfinishes, with an interesting texture that's matte but luminous at the same time. 

It's a little like my beloved MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Porcelain Pink, which gives a soft pink glow but is not outright shiny like other MAC MSFs, except this is better if you are afraid of looking oily.

MAC Sunday Afternoon swatch

I did not get any of the lip glasses or liners from the Vera collection.

It's not that they aren't nice; in fact the glitter liners are beautiful. But I don't find the glitters in pencils obviously enough to make much of a difference from regular metallic pencils, so I didn't see any point buying them at MAC prices. 

As for the glosses, well, I'm not a lip gloss girl so I gave all of them a miss. You'll have to check them out yourselves at the counter and judge for yourself if you like them!